Yes on Y: Protect Oakland Renters

Oct. 25, 2018

Oakland's housing crisis is so dire that this week the United Nations called our homeless encampments a “global scandal”. We know that "no cause evictions" lead to displacement of our neighbors, some of whom end up on the streets. With Oakland's Measure Y -- which is backed by our partners at Causa Justa::Just Cause -- voters have the chance to pass important tenant protections.

Measure Y would protect more than 8,000 renters from “no cause evictions” by:

expanding protections against evictions to all buildings built before 1996 regardless of the size of the building;

closing a loophole in the current “Just Cause” ordinance that currently allows landlords who live on the same property (a duplex or triplex rental unit) to evict tenants without a reason; and

stopping speculator abuse and bad-acting landlords, as they would only be able to evict people with “Just Cause” reasons, such as violation of lease terms, owner move-in, or failure to pay rent, or eight other reasons under the “Just Cause for Eviction” ordinance.

Measure Y is fair to small property landlords, allowing them to evict tenants who are violating their leases, breaking the law, or not paying rent, along with 8 other “Just Cause” reasons to evict tenants, including a valid owner move-in. Good-acting landlords can continue with their business. Measure Y focuses on bad actors and corporate landlords who are taking advantage of the loophole within our current eviction protection laws.

The California Realtors Association is one of the biggest opponents, spending a lot of money to try to defeat Measure Y because speculators and corporate landlords benefit from charging the highest rents possible, and do not support renter protections. They are not interested in protecting long-term Oakland renters and the community that has laid roots for generations.

Measure Y will not solve the housing crisis alone, but it, along with Prop 10, will provide much needed protections to help keep existing tenants in their homes and prevent further homelessness. Join us in voting YES on Measure Y and Prop 10!